or – NBC News
In the United Kingdom, the program Love Island has influenced young women when it comes to undergoing cosmetic treatments, and this year it was American viewers who began to notice.
The popular reality British Love Island returned in early June with its 11th season, and with it has come a renewed wave of concern about the safety of cosmetic procedures and their use by young women.
The show brings together dozens of contestants – or “islanders” – in search of love, friendship and drama, and the “effect Love Island” associated with it has for years come under scrutiny for the influence it exerts on younger viewers, known for seeking cosmetic procedures to imitate the image of the show’s cast.
Comments on cast members’ looks and beauty regimens have become an important part of how many fans engage with the series. However, this year’s contestants have sparked especially strong reactions on social media. Some have said that young women have gone too far in using procedures such as Botox injections and dermal fillers, which have now become commonplace in the UK.
“Plastic surgery and injection procedures performed incorrectly they can make you look older”said Dr. Daniel Barrett, who appeared in a video on his TikTok social network account in which he guessed the age of four of the contestants. He estimated that each of them was over 32 years old, when in reality they are all between 24 and 26. The video has received more than 11 million views and thousands of comments, many of them discussing the aging effect of fillers, Botox and other injection procedures intended to enhance the face.
In recent years, the rise of cosmetic procedures, which began in the 1990s, has spread to young people, fueled in part by social media, which has normalized the use of fillers and Botox to correct small imperfections. This has also led some people to reveal whether they have undergone cosmetic procedures to meet modern beauty standards.
But with that acceptance, the doors have been opened to speculation about who has had what done to their body, leaving many women caught in the middle of the debates: scrutinized about how they look and what procedures they have had done. Kylie Jenner, a reality television star known for popularizing full lips achieved with filler, recently spoke out against the “hurtful” comments she has received about the plastic surgery she underwent. Jenner began dissolving some of her facial fillers last year.
“There really is a horrible, unrealistic expectation that women have to look perfect and natural,” said Sharon Gaffka, who competed on season seven of Love Island in 2021.
Most of the cast members have not spoken publicly about the issue, but Samantha Kenny, who appeared in Barrett’s video and was recently eliminated from the show, revealed in an interview with the tabloid Mirror that she had had Botox and had a facial before the season.
Gaffka said he was angry when he discovered the effect Love Island because he felt that he contributed to a “cycle of behavior” that pressures young women to get cosmetic improvements. She stated that the experience “forced me to go down a path of rediscovery of myself and my image.”
“I underwent these procedures, I went to Love Island and then I made another young woman feel that she needed these procedures to be considered attractive,” she commented.
The issue is especially pressing in the United Kingdom, where regulations on nonsurgical cosmetic procedures are more lax than in the United States.
Ashton Collins, director of Save Face, a registry of aesthetic professionals authorized by the British Government, stated that these people They do not need medical training to perform these procedures. According to Collins, they can take a one- or two-day training course, purchase unlicensed filler products, and start injecting patients in less than a week.
“The aesthetic market for Botox and fillers is almost completely unregulated, and anyone can perform these treatments from anywhere,” Collins explained.
Gaffka explained that procedures that include injections are often called tweakments in the United Kingdom, which she says makes them seem like low risk and so normal “getting your nails done.” Gaffka has been open about her own experience of getting her lips filled and then having that filler removed.
“Getting lip fillers or any other type of filler should be taken as seriously as getting a breast operation, because if something goes wrong, the consequences are serious,” she said.
Sharon King, vice-president of the British Aesthetic Nursing Association, said the Government was making some efforts to regulate and improve the quality of non-surgical cosmetic procedures.
King referenced attempts to create a better standard for assessing injectable products, such as fillers, through the UK’s Conformity Assessment labelling. King also stated that there is a push for regulated licensing system to ensure that those who inject the products receive adequate training.
“We are immersed in a general election to elect a new Government, so that will also play a role,” King said. “At the moment, everything is kind of on the back burner, but we hope to learn more about this upcoming legislation.”
Some social media users wondered if the criticism surrounding cosmetic procedures that arose as a result of the program Love Island this year would encourage young women to adopt a more “natural” look. A social network user X called this season “the best anti-filler ad I have ever seen.”
Gaffka and Collins said people should be able to have procedures that make them feel happy and confident. However, it is important that they know what the potential risks of cosmetic improvements are, what preparation the person who is going to inject a product has to perform certain procedures, and what the filler contains.
Gaffka warned viewers to be careful with his comments, which one TikTok user described as “incredibly brutal” about the cast members’ appearance. Love Island has come under fire over the years for its lack of support for cast members following the deaths of two former contestants by suicide.
“We know how hard it can be. The mental health of residents Love Island It can be pretty difficult when they leave the program,” Gaffka said. “I think people really need to remember some of the horrible things that have happened in the past when they talk about people.”
